“A guilty conscience needs no accuser”in other languages
People with something to hide tend to give themselves away.
Czech
Italian
Spanish
Same idea, different pictures
English states it as a rule. The other languages give the guilty person a telltale body part: a straw tail in Italian and Spanish, butter on the head in Czech.
Each image explains itself once you see it. Straw catches fire, so the Spanish saying in full warns that whoever has a straw tail should stay away from the fire. Butter carried on your head melts in the sun and drips down your face. And someone with a hidden bump can't stop touching it.
More sayings in other languages
- A hard nut to crack
- A horn of plenty
- A piece of cake
- A road to Damascus moment
- A snake in the grass
- A stab in the back
- A Trojan horse
- Add fuel to the fire
- All hands on deck